Legs burning, breath coming in harsh pants...panic overtaking its mind. It wanted to drop out right now. It wanted to leave. This was supposed to just be a fun course, it was supposed to win and prove itself worthy! But it was falling behind, its desperate claw up the cliff rendering it too exhausted to sprint at full speed, pushing it further and further and further back...

No...no wait no! I can't lose! Master Vargas would be disappointed. Master Vargas would see it as a failure. And it would be discarded and forgotten, like Palefur had been in the snows of Hydra. It thought that it would break from her legacy, but it was wrong.

Its burning legs slowed it too much. It wouldn't make it past the finish line yet.

Finally done with the climb, Doug would run as fast as he could, paying little attention to the other races. He just wanted to run and run and run until he was finally at the end. He wasn't really having any fun anymore, he was just tired. And... he tripped. He let out a surprised yelp as he fell, but took a couple seconds to pick himself back up. Would he even finish in time? Did he WANT to finish? He just wanted to AttackdestoryattackdestroydestroyDESTROY this to all be over, already.

Round Eight has begun!

One Last Run...

Successes here, terrible mishaps there, and the race was well and truly drawing to a close. Minutes are left on the invisible clock to finish... !

Current Sections

1. Slip and slide! No runners

2. Um... electrifying. No runners

3. It's just fire. No runners

4. Climb, climb, climb! Bug... :(

5. FitnessGram Pacer Test. Kalama, Ruby-Beta, Doug, Hunter, Ivory

Finished. Yew, Hemlocke, Sorda, Pumpkin, Huckleberry, Sharp, Tupu

For your point-tallying convenience, here's a link to a Google Sheets detailing rolls on the current section and who we're waiting on!

@Kalama @Doug @Ruby-Beta @Ivory (Bug) @Hunter

Hunter was close, so painfully, tantilizingly close. This had been the most fun part thus far-- a dead sprint to the end! He could see the pillars up ahead, and everyone who had finished already, as well as those he was only just catching up to. "Come on! Don't give up!" He called to those who were struggling, grin stretching wide from cheek to cheek as he dropped down on to all fours and began a mad dash for the end.

He scrambled through the last remaining dredges of the race, and bolted past the finishing pillar. Wait, WAIT-- his brain caught up with him, and he spun around, nearly stepping on his own tail and then nearly falling over as he threw his hands forward.

Laughing, gasping, panting for breath, Hunter slapped his paws on to one of the Union Pillars, sliding down on to his belly as he suddenly felt how completely exhausted he was. Hoooh, that had been exhilarating! And he had done it, he had won the race!

Not that he had gotten first, second, or even third or fourth. Nah, he didn't really place. But he beat the race by finishing, and that was enough to leave his tail flicking back and forth as he grinned on the ground, fingers pressed to smooth stone.

He had never been so proud of himself.

Ahh, and the home stretch-...

Ivory took a breath, then broke into a thundrous gallop, every claw-and-hoof-step pounding on the icy earth below. Her eyes were on the prize: the gathered Gembound who'd finished way, way ahead of her (damn).

If her performance in the rest had been mediocre, her final stretch, at least, was flashy as all hell: powerful, even. She came in at speed, a flying gallop (not literally flying, though her feathered wings flared as she crossed the finish), horns glossy in their sweep behind her and nostrils widely-flared. She looked graceful, for once: strong and swift, and never mind that she'd labored through most of it in clumsy confusion.

She was proud of managing, at least, though a little humbled by the experience overall--and determined to train herself so that if she were otherwise somehow tested, she would do a little better.

They said we couldn't fly, Bug thought, tail lashing where she crouched--staring up--at the cliffs above. But they didn't say anything about not using my wings.
She was the last one--left far behind, alone in the sweep of cold wind down the tunnel--but she was still determined. Bat-wings (well, dragon-wings) pushed forward, hooked fingertip-claws gripping on the ice, providing extra purchase where her other limbs might fail.

Bug went tumbling over a moment later, the ice still seeming to want her to fail, as if an invisible and giggling hand merely shoved her off the platforms. She went down with a hard thunk and a short, sharp yowl, scrabbling to her feet with puffed-out fur and widened eyes, as if attacked.

Gritting its teeth hard, Beta threw itself at the finish line with fervor, running as fast as it could go, but it wasn't like it mattered at all, considering that it would finish almost at the end. How had this even happened?! It was in first! It was winning! And now...

It had failed.

It didn't look, in case the Master or Alpha had seen the display. It had failed in the fighting and now in the obstacle course too. I was supposed to shine here...but I just made a fool out of myself.

The finish line was right there. Just a little bit longer, and he could tear a red rat apart do whatever he wanted. He shook some dust out of his fur. At this point any fun he’d been having had dried into frustration and resentment at failing so badly. He refused to just leave, though.

And oh boy did he run. The just about the fastest he had ever run, all the way to the pillars. When he finally got there, he sat, panting.

Kalama finished her paranoid rant, panting. She'd place if it were the last thing to do. All these competitions were rigged. She'd have words with everyone once she was done. The gembound around her raced towards the finish. She scuffed the ground, and then with a growl, the chicken surged after them. Her indignation surfaced in a burst of energy, and Kalama's talons raced across the ground.

think "speak"

Origin's Fourth Olympics

That's All, Folks!

Here's the final placements for the Obstacle Course:

1. Yew
   
2. Hemlocke
   
3. Sorda

Thank you all for racing to the very end, even those who were less successful in their endeavors! (Bug... :cattocry:) ❤ Feel free to exit and claim your rewards in the Magicka Market!

---

Remember, the magicka rewards for each Event are as follows...
⁠

— First place in each Event will receive ʡ 400. Redeemable once per character. See !! note.
— Second place in each Event will receive ʡ 300. Redeemable once per character.
— Third place in each Event will receive ʡ 200. Redeemable once per character.
— All placing characters have had their medal achievements added already!

— Participation in each Event will net that character ʡ 50, regardless of placement. May be redeemed multiple times on the same character, per Event.
— Successfully helping to set-up, judge, announce, et cetera will net each character ʡ 75. Redeemable once per character.

!! The first-place magicka prize will be withheld, due to Yew's being transferred to another player.

@Nameless @Temperantia (Tupu, Pip, Kalama) (IF any judges would like to make the IC announcement!) @Yew @Hemlocke (Crown) @Sharp @Sorda (Doug) @Ruby-Beta (Huckleberry) @Pumpkin @Ivory (Bug) @Sniffles @Hunter @Lady @Tahi-Shei